Special - Calling Alpha Control: BILL HEDGES

CALLING ALPHA CONTROL: BILL HEDGES EPISODE SYNOPSIS: We welcome Lost in Space Prop & Miniature Replicator, Writer, Researcher & Independent Film Studio Owner; Mr. Bill Hedges. Bill is well known in the LIS fan community for his detailed & screen accurate recreations of classic LIS props & sets, many of which have been realized using original components & studio blueprints from the series. As a kid, Bill fell in love with LIS when it premiered in the Fall of 1965 during its prime-time broadcast run. He collected most all the merchandise that was available to a fan in those years, like the classic Aurora model kits, 'ViewMaster' disks & 'Topps' trading cards. After the show was canceled Bill lived in an area where it wasn’t available in syndication, but his interest in the LIS never wavered. It was only after the internet opened up & connected a whole world of LIS fandom that that Bill started realizing his childhood dream of recreating some of the Fantastic Worlds that Irwin Allen created over 50 years ago. What began with collecting a few pieces of control panels from the original sets, eventually led to building a realistic Jupiter 2 interior, buying an old downtown movie theater and renovating that into a working film studio, complete with partial J2 exterior & alien landscape.  Thus, was born Cosmic Films Studio. BILL’S BIO: Mr. Hedges lives in Lyons, Nebraska, which is about 70 miles North of Omaha. He grew up on a farm and like a lot of kids in that era was fascinated with the Space Program, Astronomy, Electronics & Science Fiction. LIS checked off all those boxes & even though he loved the show’s stories, it was the hardware & Special Effects that really caught his imagination. For High School graduation his parents gave him a Super 8 movie camera, which he used to pursue the hobby of amateur filmmaking. Along the way, he managed to collect a slew of production materials from LIS including, blueprints, maps, storyboards & scripts. His research & knowledge allowed him to write several features for Flint Mitchell’s famous Lost in Space Encyclopedia, which is still considered an invaluable resource on the technical aspects of the series. After retiring from his career with the US Postal Service & establishing Cosmic Films Studio, he’s fully devoted himself to movie-making in all its aspects from fabricating sets, modeling, writing scripts, filming & post-production. His passion has blossomed into a remarkable story that includes his own series of sci-fi fantasy films about a ‘Cosmic Cat’ named Penny. We’re going to speak with Bill today about his love for & research about LIS, his remarkable recreations of sets, props & miniatures AND get a peek inside the world of Cosmic Films Studio, so sit back & enjoy this compelling interview with the amazing Mr. Bill Hedges. PODCAST INFO: This interview was conducted on 6 SEP 2018. Links: http://www.cosmicfilmsstudio.com/ https://www.facebook.com/Cosmic-Films-324773570979606/ http://netnebraska.org/interactive-multimedia/television/nebraska-stories-cosmic-films-801 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MBFuSCDUGY https://siouxlandnews.com/news/local/recreating-hollywood https://www.facebook.com/324773570979606/videos/325123207611309/ https://www.facebook.com/324773570979606/videos/340943326029297/ https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/LostinSpaceProps/info https://www.facebook.com/alphacontrolpodcast/ http://www.marccushman.com/books.html EMAIL: [email protected]